The top-seeded Phoenix Suns had little trouble winning their Western Conference playoff opener on Sunday night over the No. 8 New Orleans Pelicans and look for a 2-0 lead with another game in the desert Tuesday night.

Nitrobetting gets is more than ready for the postseason. Find a full preview of the Pelicans vs. Suns game below. We present you with game details, team and player stats, the latest NBA betting odds, trends, and predictions–all of which help you lock in on the best picks.

Pelicans vs. Suns Game 2 Information

• When: Tuesday, April 19, 2022, 10:00 PM ET
• Where: Footprint Center, Phoenix, AZ
• TV: TNT
• Radio: KTAR 98.7 FM (Pelicans) / KLRZ 100.3 FM (Suns)
• Live Stream: NBA League Pass
• NBA Betting Odds: Suns (-9.5) / Pelicans (+9.5)

READ MORE: Nets vs. Celtics Game 2 NBA Playoffs Odds and Preview – April 20th, 2022

Why Bet on the New Orleans Pelicans?

The Pelicans shot 2-of-16 from the field with Bridges as the primary defender. The Defensive Player of the Year finalist made life particularly hard for CJ McCollum, who went 0-of-9 when being guarded by the Suns’ rising young star.

The Pelicans got down big early because in large part they were 4-for-18 on uncontested shots in the first half. The Suns also had six first-half blocks. New Orleans trailed by 21 points at halftime, but they were able to whittle the Suns’ lead to eight going into the fourth quarter. Another come-from-behind win briefly looked possible. Then Paul took over. In a span of two minutes and four seconds, Paul connected on three 3-pointers. All of them were deep pull-ups from virtually the same spot on the floor.

“You can blitz him,” the Pels’ Larry Nance said of Paul. “You can trap him. You can try to get the ball out of his hands. But he’s as seasoned as they come. He’s seen a lot of different coverages, and he’s been in this position just about every year of his career. He’s like a coach on the court. We all know how good he is. But it’s our job to make his life difficult.”

Jonas Valanciunas finished with 18 points and a career-high 25 rebounds in the loss. It was a franchise playoff record and one shy of the most rebounds in a playoff contest by any player since 1983-84, a mark shared by Bismack Biyombo (a current Suns reserve), Dwight Howard and Hakeem Olajuwon.

McCollum shot 9-of-25 from the floor for 25 points, eight rebounds and six assists. He was way off early by missing his first six shots. McCollum went into halftime with just eight points on 2-of-11 shooting with New Orleans down by 19. Brandon Ingram also struggled on 6-for-17 shooting for 18 points and five turnovers.

Why Bet on the Phoenix Suns?

Of course, the Suns reached the NBA Finals last season and probably are better this year as Devin Booker had MVP-caliber numbers (although wasn’t selected as one of the finalists) and Mikal Bridges is a Defensive Player of the Year candidate.

Bridges leads the Suns and ranks in the top-10 league-wide in matchup difficulty. While playing more minutes and covering more ground than any player, he has helped Phoenix rank second in the league in defensive rating (106.5). Bridges also was one of just two players in the NBA this season to start all 82 games.

“Any task or any job isn’t too big for him,” Booker said. “Never see him complaining, you see him with his head down working. I’m inspired by it.”

Booker finished the regular season averaging 26.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.8 assists, just missing a rare 25/5/5 season. A 25/5/5 stat line from a player on the league’s best team has happened only 12 times in NBA history, with that particular player winning NBA MVP all 12 times.

In Sunday’s win, Booker had 25 points, eight assists and four rebounds, shooting 8-for-19 from the field and 5-for-5 from the free throw line. Chris Paul was fabulous at age 36 with 30 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and three steals. CP3 set the tone early tonight by swatting Brandon Ingram’s shot on the Pelicans’ first possession, and the Suns were dominant from the get-go. Paul was the oldest player in NBA playoff history with 30 points and 10 assists in a game. He will be 37 in a couple of weeks.

Former No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton had 21 points, nine rebounds and four blocks. Ayton contested 20 shots from the Pelicans and limited the opponents to just two makes in those attempts.

Suns vs. Pelicans Betting Trends

• Pelicans are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games following a straight up loss.
• Pelicans are 13-6 ATS in their last 19 road games.
• The total went under in 12 of New Orleans’ last 16 games.
• Suns are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games following a straight up win of more than 10 points.
• Suns are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games as a favorite.
• The total went under in 6 of Phoenix’s last 6 games.

Suns vs. Pelicans Expert Betting Prediction

Suns win but Pels cover this time.

This is just one of the many sports betting guides that you can read here at Nitrobetting news. Stay tuned for more NBA game previews and articles and don’t forget to check out the latest Basketball betting odds on the sportsbook.

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*All odds stated are subject to change without prior notice.